Dear Mrs. Fructer
Dear Mrs. Fructer,
How do you thank a teacher for literally saving your high school experience? How do you thank a teacher for believing in you and giving you the chance to succeed when so many others labeled you lazy or uncaring?
How can I even begin to express the gratitude I feel? I don’t know that I can, but I’m going to try.
I never had a teacher who understood me the way you do. You never assumed I was dumb or simply not trying. You recognized that there are things I can do and things I struggle with, but you chose to work with my strengths.
When you noticed I was failing the weekly quizzes, you pulled me aside and asked if there was anything you could do to help. You offered to provide me with a set of notes. You suggested I move my seat closer to the board. You assured me that I could take extra time for tests in a quiet classroom down the hall.
Whenever I face a challenge, I know I can count on you because I know you want me to succeed. You’ve shown me that you’ll do everything you can to make sure I have what I need to do well. That makes me determined to give it my all—to prove that your faith in me isn’t misplaced and that I care just as much about my success as you do. Mrs. Fructer, I will never forget you.
There was a time when I thought I would be a high school dropout by the time I reached tenth grade.
Thanks to you, I’ll be graduating this year.
Your student, Sarah L.
Mrs. Fructer is a resource room teacher in a girls’ high school in the New York area. The author is a high school senior.
In This Section
A Matter of Focus: Inside the Mind of a Teen with ADHD by Leah B.
What to Do When Your Child Is Struggling by Amian Frost Kelemer
The View on the Ground: A teacher’s perspective, as told to Rachel Schwartzberg